Why I Will Never Watch Another Episode of The Apprentice

When the Apprentice came on the scene back in 2004, it was an instant hit, and rightfully so. It was a glimpse into the business world that perhaps the average person did not get to see. I found it educational when they had contests such as buy the following items, and whichever team can get them for a lower price wins. Another favorite was here's $2000, buy stuff to sell at a flea market, and whichever team makes the most money wins. This was great TV, and I thought the show would last for years.

I was wrong. By Season 5 it was running out of steam, so they recorded Season 6 in Los Angeles, but that did nothing to help the sagging ratings, so by Season 7 it became Celebrity Apprentice, which did well enough to warrant another season, premiering soon on NBC.

Here are some reasons it went south:

(a) The show became one big infomercial for the sponsoring companies. In the beginning there were a few tasks that were sponsored by big corporations, but then you had others that were as simple as selling lemonade on the streets of New York City. Once the companies took over the tasks, we had to hear Trump's spiel about what a fantastic company it is, blah blah blah. Viewers started resenting this and tuned out.

(b) Sometimes Trump's firings made no sense. In Survivor, for instance, the contestants vote each other out. Here, Trump could fire someone at his whim, and that led to unfair firings and people hanging around longer than they should, perhaps because controversial figures lead to higher ratings. This too annoyed many viewers.

(c) Trump got too high on the boardroom. Yes, conflict is what makes reality shows go round, but many viewers preferred the nitty-gritty of putting together the projects and presenting them. When the task ended at the half-hour mark, the other half was filled with who won, the reward, the pre-boardroom strategizing, and the bickering at the boardroom, where Trump would (in a mean spirited manner) force contestants to badmouth each other. Failure to do so often led to said contestant's firing. People got sick of the shtick, which became redundant. Had the task lasted for, say, forty-five minutes and the rest of the show was crammed into the last fifteen, the intelligent viewer more likely would have stayed tuned.

When the celebrities took over, the intelligent viewers completely lost interest. Many of the tasks involved raising money for charity, which became who had more friends in higher places. Now NBC announced that they are expanding the show to two hours. Trump mentioned that he would show more scenes from the boardroom. Great, just what we need. It's a shame because I've seen every episode and now I am done with the show. Again, too many jump the shark moments to remember, but I've had it already. Enjoy, and let me know who wins.

www.tvweek.com/news/2008/12/nbcs_sunday_audible_supersize.php